Cleophus
Derived from Greek, meaning "renowned glory" or "famous glory".
Name Census estimates that about 1,078 living Americans carry the first name Cleophus. It is a predominantly male name (99.1% of registrations). The average person named Cleophus today is around 63 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cleophus births was 1947 (46 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cleophus. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
1.1K
~ 1 in 317,954 Americans
Peak year
1947
46 babies that year
Average age
63
years old
2007 SSA rank
#3,952
Tracked since 1904
Census
Cleophus in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 811 people with the first name Cleophus, which placed it at #14,514 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#14,514
National first-name rank
People counted
811
811 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
91.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cleophus
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cleophus is Black at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and White (3.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Cleophus described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Cleophus at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American91.6% · 743
- Two or more races3.8% · 31
- White3.0% · 24
- Hispanic or Latino1.2% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.1% · 1
Gender
Gender distribution for Cleophus
Out of the 2,042 babies given the name Cleophus since 1880, 99.1% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Cleophus as a male name
- Ranked #9,957 in 2007
- 7 male births in 2007
- Peak: 1947 (46 births)
Cleophus as a female name
- Ranked #3,952 in 1926
- 7 female births in 1926
- Peak: 1926 (7 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cleophus leans strongly male. 786 people counted with this name were male (97.2%), compared with 23 female bearers (2.8%).
Popularity
Cleophus: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cleophus from the 1900s through to the 2000s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 356 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cleophus by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Cleophus during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cleophus' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 9 states and territories. Alabama, Arkansas, Texas recorded the most babies named Cleophus, while Michigan, Louisiana, Illinois recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 62 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cleophus
The name Cleophus has its origins in Greek culture and language. It is derived from the Greek words "kleos," meaning glory or renown, and "phos," meaning light. The name can be interpreted to mean "glory of light" or "renowned light."
In ancient Greek mythology, Cleophus was the name of a minor deity associated with the sun and light. References to this deity can be found in some ancient Greek texts and writings, although the details are scarce.
The earliest recorded use of the name Cleophus dates back to the 5th century BC. During this time, it was a relatively uncommon name among the Greek population but held a certain level of prestige due to its association with light and glory.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the name Cleophus was a Greek philosopher born in 420 BC. He was a student of Socrates and is mentioned in some of Plato's writings, although his works have been lost to history.
In the 2nd century AD, there was a Christian martyr named Cleophus who was executed during the Roman persecutions of Christians. He is venerated as a saint in some Christian traditions.
During the Byzantine era, a notable figure named Cleophus served as a general in the imperial army in the 7th century AD. He is credited with several military victories against invading forces.
In the 12th century, a monk named Cleophus lived in a monastery on Mount Athos in Greece. He is known for his writings on monastic life and spirituality, which were influential in Eastern Orthodox Christianity.
Another notable individual with the name Cleophus was a 16th-century Greek scholar and humanist. He was instrumental in preserving and translating many ancient Greek texts during the Renaissance period.
While the name Cleophus has its roots in ancient Greek culture, it has been used sporadically throughout history in various parts of the world, often reflecting the influence of Greek language and literature.
People
Cleophus + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cleophus as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cleophus: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cleophus?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,078 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cleophus going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 317,954 US residents.
Is Cleophus a common name?
We classify Cleophus as "Rare". It ranks above 90.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,042 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cleophus most popular?
The single biggest year for Cleophus was 1947, when 46 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cleophus is about 63 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Cleophus in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 811 people with the name Cleophus, or 0.27 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #14,514 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Cleophus in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Cleophus?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cleophus leans strongly male. 786 people counted with this name were male (97.2%), compared with 23 female bearers (2.8%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Cleophus?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cleophus is Black at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and White (3.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Cleophus most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Cleophus in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.6% (743 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Cleophus in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cleophus a male name?
Yes, 99.1% of people registered as Cleophus in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Cleophus still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cleophus in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Cleophus can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people have the name Cleophus?
Find out how many people share the name Cleophus on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.